Economy: Sberbank launches Russia’s first loan secured by cryptocurrency

Economy 2.0. The Russian financial sector has taken an important symbolic step in the integration of digital assets . Sberbank, the country’s largest bank, has officially announced a loan secured exclusively by cryptocurrencies. This pilot project, implemented together with the mining giant Intelion Data, marks the beginning of a new era of financing Web3 companies in Russia.

Key points of this article:

• Sberbank took a historic step by providing a loan secured by cryptocurrencies.
• Intelion Data used its own the production of digital currency as collateral, which was a turning point for the financing of Web3 in Russia.

Innovative financial scheme for industrial mining Within this framework agreements Intelion Data used some of its cryptocurrency products as pledge to receive liquidity . While the exact amount of the transaction and the specific nature of the assets were not disclosed, Savings Bank stated that the funds are secured using its own Rutoken storage solution. This system guarantees integrity digital assets throughout the repayment period, offering a level of security comparable to traditional ones bank guarantees .

For Mr. Popov, the vice-president of Oschadbank, this pilot project exists important for testing mechanisms security and compliance necessary for market development. The bank’s goal is to transform this experimental product on stable a solution not only for miners, but also for all companies that own digital assets. As such, this initiative is part of a broader strategy Savings Bank which is currently testing several decentralized finance (DeFi) tools.

After DeFi and tokenization, Sberbank receives a loan secured by cryptocurrency – Source: Account X

A sign of the maturity of Russia’s domestic industry Tymofiy Semenov, CEO of Intelion Data, sees this deal as a crucial practical one example which demonstrates the growing maturity of the Russian market. His company, which, in particular, exploits a huge data center near the Kalinin nuclear power plant, received almost 79 million dollars income in 2024. According to him, the success of this financing models can allow scaling of the whole mining an industry that has significant energy capacity but sometimes lacks traditional solutions financing .

This development is taking place against the background of fast-changing regulatory landscape While Central Bank of Russia is considering allowing retail sales up to an annual limit of approximately $3,800, Sberbank favors gradual and structured legalization. By working directly with the regulator to develop these infrastructure solutions, the banking giant is positioning itself as a central pillar of the country’s future digital financial architecture.

The initiative of Oschadbank symbolizes the desire of Russian financial players to turn the country’s technological leadership in mining into a concrete driver of growth. By integrating cryptocurrencies as legitimate collateral, the Russian banking system lays the groundwork for a sovereign financial infrastructure capable of supporting a heavy digital industry while preparing the legislative framework until 2026.